S05.E05: Bad Beat

[formerlyfreedom]

Originally scheduled to air 10/31/2017, and pushed back due to the World Series;

Quote

To track down the infamous arms dealer Dan "Daniel" Valdano, Jake and Terry go undercover at an illegal gambling club, but when Holt gets involved to coach the two in the art of poker, his addiction resurfaces. Meanwhile, Boyle buys a food truck that was formerly used in a brutal string of murders without telling his investor, Amy, and Hitchcock and Scully challenge Rosa to a "Butt-lympics".

 

[WritinMan]

I sometimes laugh so much watching this show I need to watch it again On-Demand to catch what I missed. This is one of those episodes.

[Rinaldo]

I enjoyed this episode a lot too, but the Rosa/Hitchcock/Sully subplot was one of the few times I've felt a blatant "we need a C-story, anything, so all our cast has something to do." I just didn't believe it as anything but a device to give everyone some screen time. I would much rather do without two or three characters for a week (understanding that they'll have more another time) than give them such uninteresting filler. The poker stuff, great; the Amy/Charles food truck stuff, quite all right if not inspired. That's enough.

[hoodooznoodooz]

Loved seeing Boyle so happy that Jake asked him to be his BM.

[Traveller519]

I completely agree,  @Rinaldo. The poker story was well crafted, structured, and executed. The other plots were pretty uninspired, and victims of a 22 episode season writing drought coming off three strong episodes to start the season. Terry and Holt are the best characters for elevating the others. So, when they're both tied up in the A plot, the other plots noticibly suffered, especially with Amy and Rosa in different plots and no Gina.

Damn if Andre Braugher doesn't continue to be fantastic, though. In this episode you had his mentor character, the side of the character that is susceptible to his vices, and the calm collected cop, reading the situation. And it all flowed seemlessly without being overly showy. It's really a shame that his Emmy Window appears to have closed in the same fashion Nick Offerman's did. It's true the character hasn't especially evolved, but he does it so damn well.

Edited November 8, 2017 by Traveller519

[Mama No Life]

Andre Braugher was fantastic tonight.  When Jake asked if he was good at poker and he did the card trick with his stilted, "I'm aight"  I was dying.  And contractions usage being his tell?  Bwahahaha.

I think another thing I realize more and more is how much acting Andy Samberg does with his face.  The tone of every conversation is played out with his expressions and it's quite impressive.  I'm kinda crushing on the big dork. 

[hoodooznoodooz]

"You're a virgin. That's an order."

"Peralta, say, 'Hot damn!'"

I love that Holt's tell is using contractions!

[iMonrey]

I love that Holt's "tell" is using contractions. The whole gambling addiction story was great material for Andre Braugher. Like telling Terry to dangle him  over the side of the building by his feet so he could get a WiFi signal. 

Obviously, Terry's pecs have names, because they are almost characters in their own right. What was the name of his tell? Was is "Eugene?"

"There was a pooper!"

[thuganomics85]

Really enjoyed the A-plot and I like the idea of Holt having a gambling addiction.  That actually strikes me as a realistic vice that he would have, because he probably does tell himself that it's just the numbers, odds, etc., and that he is smart enough to figure it out and win.  Loved the Terry/Jake team and them helping him through it (plus saving his ass from a mobster!), and planning on supporting him going forward.  And I feel like an idiot that I didn't figure out that Holt's tell is contradictions, because really, that is a big warning sign for Holt!

Amy and Boyle investing in a food truck is an interesting idea that I hope we see more of.  In general, I always like it when Amy/Boyle get storylines, because they aren't as paired up compared to others, and I do feel like they play off one another well.  Plus, they both have Jake in common!

Rosa facing off against Hitchcock and Scully in a sitting contest did smack of "We need to find something for these characters to do" writing, but I chuckled once or twice, so I can't complain too much.

[bethy]

This show and the way it treats it characters. Charles getting a fake-out best man proposal with Jake asking him to be his BM contrasted with Jake’s tender, just-the-two-of-them (but still getting in a Title of Your Sex Tape line) proposal to Amy is everything that makes this show perfect to me.

[peeayebee]

10 hours ago, Mama No Life said:

Andre Braugher was fantastic tonight.  When Jake asked if he was good at poker and he did the card trick with his stilted, "I'm aight"  I was dying.

I loved that. It's great anytime Holt uses slang or silly words. 

Holt: I can stop whenever I want.
Terry: Then stop.
Holt: I don wanna.

 

2 hours ago, iMonrey said:

Obviously, Terry's pecs have names, because they are almost characters in their own right. What was the name of his tell? Was is "Eugene?"

Yes, Eugene. Hee. I was wondering if we had learned their names in an earlier ep.

Loved the pooper stuff, esp when Terry had checked for poopers then Holt came in and said, "Any poopers?" Later when the three of them were talking in the bathroom, I was thinking that they hadn't checked for poopers. And wouldn't you know it. There WAS one. ABC. Always be checking.

Oh man, the flashback where Holt is betting on the ponies -- "I'd like to bet $20,000 on Yabba… Dabba… Doo."

I liked the Rosa/Hitchcock/Scully story line. The butt-lympics. So funny when there was that scene betw Amy and Charles, and Rosa is rolling thru in the background. I loved the happiness the three of them showed when they decided to go down together to get a weiner. Rosa was actually beaming! 

I liked when Charles was telling Amy about the food truck, everything she was horrified about, he was excited about. 

And the Cold Open was great. I thought maybe Jake was pulling one over on Charles, but it was still a nice surprise when Charles turned around to see the celebration.

[rhys]

I was disturbed to learn that Holt had a gambling addiction. Has that come up before?

[tennisgurl]

The Cold Open might be one of my new favorites. Not because it was the funniest, but just because I loved how it was done. I really thought that Charles was going to be disappointed by Jake not asking him to be the Best Man, but his reaction to realizing he did made it so much better! Boyle was so happy!

Holts poker tell is contradictions! And Jake figured it out! Hilarious. Especially as Holt bemoaned how he hot rock bottom by using double contractions. Andy Samberg and Andre Bauer work so well together. I mean, who would have known? 

[Ikki]

2 hours ago, rhys said:

I was disturbed to learn that Holt had a gambling addiction. Has that come up before?

Holt's gambling addiction has come up before, as a matter of fact! (I'm excited about that because I love continuities like that.)

It came up in season 2, episode 8, "USPIS." When they were trying to help Amy quit smoking, Holt says, "I don't like to talk about this, but many years ago, I myself overcame an addiction. I could not get enough of the ponies." And then...well, here's the clip:

[scrambled eggs]

15 hours ago, Mama No Life said:

Andre Braugher was fantastic tonight.  When Jake asked if he was good at poker and he did the card trick with his stilted, "I'm aight"  I was dying.  And contractions usage being his tell?  Bwahahaha.

I think another thing I realize more and more is how much acting Andy Samberg does with his face.  The tone of every conversation is played out with his expressions and it's quite impressive.  I'm kinda crushing on the big dork. 

I was really watching his face too. It was incredible during the proposal scene and ITA about yesterday as well. I like to say Andy Samberg was an honors student in the Amy Poehler faceparts class (it's a riff that she, Adam Scott, and Mike Schur go on in the commentary for Flu Season).

[Panopticon]

I couldn't quite tell at first whether the cold open was real or Charles' fantasy, and I think that says nothing but good things about this show.

While this wasn't the best episode ever, I found it solid and enjoyable. The A plot was perfect. I like Charles and Amy having a side hustle together and I hope we hear more about it in the future. And after Rosa started out the season wrongfully incarcerated, I was happy to see her doing something so purely silly.

Still basking in Gina's absence.

[Mockingbird]

Terry’s off camera “you’re a dick!” slayed me. 

Also, I don’t care how stupid the Rosa/Sully/Hitchcock storyline was. It was worth it for the absurdity and the glee on their faces when they scooted out to get the hot dogs. 

[Mrs OldManBalls]

On 2017-11-09 at 6:49 PM, Panopticon said:

Still basking in Gina's absence

I'm not missing her at all. 

[theotherhalliwell]

This season is probably my favorite so far, and part of it is because Gina's absence has definitely been addition by subtraction for me. The show is just so much better without her mean-spirited arrogance and the writers' compulsion to twist every week's storyline in a way that always gives Gina a "win" even when she richly deserves to lose. 

I loved this episode even more than the HalloVeen one. I agree with whoever said the Halloween ones are a little overstuffed and overdone for me. I almost always end up preferring these type of episodes, with the characters broken into three separate but sometimes thematically linked plotlines so that everyone has a chance to shine and so that we get more variety in that week's plots. I would've thought the Buttlympics story would be unbearably dumb, but it worked for me. I love how it ended up giving Rosa more appreciation for the little pleasures in life that she was missing out on and more respect for Hitchcock and Scully. It was fun to see Amy and Charles paired off for scenes that had absolutely nothing to do with Jake. I love when we see how Amy, as ruthlessly practical and responsible as she is, ultimately cares more about her friends being happy. The A plot was the best, the right blend of humor and a little more heft. I loved Jakes' incredulous reactions to Terry's stories about succumbing to his food addiction. 

This show always jolts me out of my bad mood more effectively than any other! 

Edited November 15, 2017 by theotherhalliwell

[Skyfall]

7 hours ago, Mrs OldManBalls said:

I'm not missing her at all. 

I’ve been commenting in Food Network shows too much. Read the original comment as Giada and agreed with this comment thinking that ?

Edited November 15, 2017 by Skyfall

[possibilities]

On 11/14/2017 at 3:23 PM, theotherhalliwell said:

Gina's absence has definitely been addition by subtraction for me. The show is just so much better without her mean-spirited arrogance

It's really remarkable how much difference it makes that she's not there. I not only don't miss her, but it's a huge relief that she's gone. I didn't like her, but I didn't realize how much she was detracting from my enjoyment of the show. Now, either I forget she existed, or I'm tense because I'm worried she might be coming back.

[betweenthebanter]

I don't miss Gina and I definitely agree that there is a more positive energy to storylines, that most likely wouldn't be there if Gina was included in them. I just hope that the writers being forced by Chelsea's absence to write storylines that don't include Gina always being right/being mean without consequences, will make them less likely to revert back into that pattern when she returns. I've said it before, I like Gina about half the time and dislike her the other half. I really hope that if this is unfortunately the last season that I will be able to like Gina more than that when she returns, instead of her bringing down storylines for me half the time.

Edited November 16, 2017 by betweenthebanter

[Lady Calypso]

It was nice to see a Boyle/Amy subplot. I feel like these two don't get enough stories together. They could mix up the pairings a little more. The show already uses the ensemble feel pretty well, but there are some pairings that are underutilized. 

I liked them actually diving more into Holt's gambling addiction when they've only briefly hinted at it before. I agree that the continuity on this show is spectacular. I can't count many shows that actually bring back one time jokes or keep up with the continuity. I can't remember exactly what flaw of Jake's that Amy found herself disliking last season, but it was something they showed a few times before that moment, which I loved. Often, shows will just mention something once but have not built up to it before, mostly because the writers have just thought of it for that particular episode. So it's nice when they actually refer to something we've actually seen before. 

I also don't miss Gina. Without her here, there's a more positive vibe with the show. Gina tends to bring the show down sometimes. They don't use Gina right when she feels superior to everyone else and is proven right. But when she's humbled and brought down from her high horse, or when she's being a genuine friend to someone like Jake, or even when Chelsea does physical comedy, she's alright.

Interesting C plot, but I don't completely hate when Hitchcock and Scully get a little more to do. The chair wheeling montage was pretty funny, at least.